


Arcane Cardistry

by IvaWrote



Category: Persona 5, Persona Series
Genre: Alternate Universe, F/F, F/M, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-05-05
Updated: 2017-05-05
Packaged: 2018-10-28 06:08:14
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,290
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10825344
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/IvaWrote/pseuds/IvaWrote
Summary: While the cards fall where they may, a good dealer knows how to reshuffle the deck in his favor. This world might be blindly bound, but as long as Igor holds the deck-- the first card in play shall always be the Fool.





	Arcane Cardistry

                Makoto checks her phone again, sighing. Around her, the train moves forward, rattling at high speed through the city depths. She finds herself reopening the news app, a faint frown marring her face as she observed the day’s headlines. No mention of her sister or herself – a plus. She quietly closes the news application, tucking her phone away into her front pocket. It’s not a long train ride to Central Square, and so she stands when her station is called, cedes her place upon the train politely for a younger girl and checks her phone, opening up the mail application with the email that had been sent just this morning.

                _Stay calm Makoto. You can do this – no big deal. It’s just a quick detour to pick some stuff up and then you’re back on your way._ She smoothed her skirt pleats out, fingers stopping over a crease, before she continues the path downwards, returning to immaculate perfection without more than a faint, slightly shaky sigh. It contained her nerves, just long enough for her to step off the train and follow the crowd into the open air. She winced slightly as she was jostled by the crowd, politely murmuring apologies as she walked through the densely packed rush of people, managing to enter the central square without more than a slightly bruised spot on her waist – though there were likely to be more bruises tomorrow. A hard breath out, and she relaxed. She’d managed to get through the rush hour traffic without injury, so the hard part was done until she had to board again. The directions she had after that were precise about how long it would take between train transfers, so if she hurried, she would be back in time to catch the next line.

                Then again, she supposed that the person who sent the email with instructions to her final destination was unaware that she was already familiar with how to get to the center of Shibuya – even if she and her sister lived technically outside of the Shibuya provenance. She presses her hand against her cheek, and almost compulsively, she pulls out her phone, swipes her finger over the combination pattern to unlock it. She scowls when her fingers shake ever-so-slightly, clenching her hand in a fist to hold herself in check. She has more than enough time to take her side-trip to the electronics store, and with a flick of her thumb, she checks on her other applications.

                To her annoyance, her mail app has closed out on the directions to her destination… _again_. She checks her phone, and grimaces. Her sister must have uploaded one of her games again – no wonder her phone was closing out of apps. With a shrug, she swipes it into the trash, confirming the deletion out without hesitation. She runs a hand through her hair, and briskly moves past the crowds. She’d come today to make a short detour and pick up her purchase before making her way to the station again, and it was with no small amount of trepidation that she entered the building.

                Inside, it’s full of people, going about their day without even a cursory look in her direction – there’s plenty of students milling about in the courtyard, so she’s not worth their time. Even the sales associates at the customer service desk seem unconcerned with her presence. She relaxes a hair – their obliviousness helps to ease her sense of discomfort at being here.

                It’s a bit early for the retail chain, but even so, the hum of activity is just as busy as the station. Not wanting to waste too much time, she digs into her bag for the slightly wrinkled paper that held her online pickup details and the order number. She takes her place at the end of the line and uses the time to smooth the paper out, allowing her to avoid making eye contact with anyone nearby.

                When Makoto reaches the front, she pushes the slip of paper towards the employee, fingers tapping against her thigh in a jittery pattern while the sales clerk left to fetch her purchase. She’d used what little funds she had left to purchase herself a laptop for her own personal use. When he returns, she shakes her head and rubs her eyes in exhaustion before thanking him politely and accepting the burden into her hands. A laptop of her own… the weight felt good in her hands, but the idea of what she was using it for – what she _would_ be using it for – that was enough to make her nerves prickle. She was so _paranoid_.

                She has to delay for a few minutes to ensure that her new purchase would fit into her bag, checking the clock on her phone to ensure she wouldn’t miss the train to her final location. With a triumphant smile, she manages to make it fit, ignoring the few passerby who were staring at her in curiosity. With a relieved huff and look at the clock, she realizes she’s still a minute or so early for her train transfer, allowing her to slow her pace as she walks past the terminals. Makoto’s so distracted by checking the clock that for a moment, the noise fading out of her hearing doesn’t register until she looks up, nearly slamming into a man who she had been walking behind. She’s immediately ready to offer an apology when she realizes that the man is not moving at all. In fact…

No one is.

                Her thoughts go blank with disbelief, and she looks around. There’s a faint, persistent humming coming from the active electronics, and she does her best to tune it out, turning to observe the location around her. It seemed out of place, especially in such a busy location – and Makoto still can’t believe what’s going on, feeling like the entire world had tilted on its axis. It takes her a few seconds to realize that the lighted displays are still active, despite the fact that everything else is still unmoving. Nervously, she draws nearer, and the displays glow softly, inviting her to stand before them. There’s an unusual quality to the display – it stands out from the peppier pop idol advertisements and invites her to view them. Most of the advertisements have gone to black, caught between transition panels – but one catches her eyes, warmth resonating from the otherwise empty panels until she arrives before one bearing the visage of a woman.

                She’s _ethereal_ – more like a fairy tale than an advertisement, her armor polished to a high shine. Her pose conveys an unusual form of solemnity, hands clasped around a massive broadsword, the ruby gem winking at her where the knight’s heart would have been. Reaching out, entranced, Makoto’s fingers touch the cool glass. It ripples under her fingers, allowing her hand to sink through, and she pulls her hand away, startled. The world ripples back, and the noise level of the rest of the world filters back in with a vengance, allowing her to step away from the enchanting display, breath short. She gives a covert glance back at the panels, before scurrying off, light footsteps trailing to her train stop as she makes her way past the posters. It’s only a few steps into the station proper that she realizes to check her phone, eyes going wide. Where had the time gone? She barely makes it onto her train, shivering a little at the harsh chill of spring combined with her impromptu exercise. She deftly makes it to a seat with the gentle application of elbows and demure smiles, her bag settling into her lap. Just a few stops, and she’d be at her destination.

                _Finally._


End file.
